Letter-box.



No. 634,006 Patented Oct. 3, I899.

-.1'. A. KUNE.

LETTER BOX.

(Application filed Apn 21, 1897. Renewed June 29, 1899.)

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U IT D STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN A. KLINE, or READING, PENNSYLVANIA.

LETTER-BOX.

SPECIFICATION for'ming part of Letters Patent No. 634,006, dated October 3, 1899. Application filed April 21, 1897. Renewed rm 29, 1899. Serial No. 722,324. on man.)-

To (ZZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J OHN A. KLINn'a citizen of the United States, residing at Readin g, in the county of Berks and State of Pennsylvania, have-invented a new and useful Letter-Box, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in letter-boxes. The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of street letter boxes and to provide a simple,inexpensive, and efficient one which will shut 0% access to the body portion of the box through the letter-receiving opening when the lid or cover is open or partially open and thereby effectually prevent an instrument or device from being introduced into the letter-box through the said letter-receiving opening and abstracting any of the mail." Y

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts, as hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in; the claims hereto appended. I In the drawings, Figure l is a perspective view of'a street letter-box constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a central vertical sectional viewI Fig. 3is a similar view,.the'drop lid or cover beingopen. Fig. 4 is azd'etail perspective view of a portion of the pivotedtrayor chute.

Like. numeralsof reference designate cor-.

respo'nding part's in the several figures of the drawings.

Ldesignatesa street letterebox con structed of suitable metal and havingthe upper'por- 1 tion' 2 of its frontiout'wardly offset and slightly inclined and provided with aletter-receiving opening 3, over which is hinged an ordinary drop lid or cover 4. The drop lid 01' cover 4 is provided at its top with inwardly--extending arms 5, passingthrough vertical slots or.

their inner endswithenlargements 5, which when the drop-lid is closed fill the vertical slot 6 and exclude moisture from the letterbox at those points.

I The letter-boxis'provi'ded at itsfront with opening.

flanges 1 extending around the top and sides of the slot 6 and projectingoutward from the face of the letter-box, as clearly illustrated assist inexcluding water from the interior of the box.

The box or chute 11, which is oblongand rectangular in section, is arranged in a vertical positionwhen the drop lid or' cover is closed, as illustrated-in Fig: 2 of the'accompanying drawings. 7 The pivoted trayor chute is provided at its'ends with suitable journals 12, arrangedin suitable bearings of the sides of the letter-box, and the ways .10, which are engaged by the lugs or projections 9, are mounted upon the exterior of the box or chute at the front thereofland when the' d'rop lid or cover 4 is raised the arms swing inward or rearward and engage the ways 'lOand tilt the tray or chute from a vertical position to ahorizontal .one, as illustrated in Fig.3 of the drawings, whereby the openbottom or mouth is made'to register with the letter-receiving When the tray or chute registers in Fig. -1 of the accompanying drawings, to

with the letter-receiving opening, access through the latterishad to the 'former only, and the box or chute prevents access to the body of the letter-box. The mouth or opening of the tray or chute has curved edges 13, I and the front of the casing of the letter-box is curved adjacent to the letter-receiving opening at 14 to form a guide for the mouth of the box or chute. The tray or chute is provided at opposite sides of the mouth or opening with curved guards l5 and 16, which tray or chute and is preferably constructed of stout sheet metal, andthe other guard 16 consists of a rib or flange extending from. the rear sideof the mouth'or entranceof the box or tray. Thefront guard .covers the letter-i receiving opening 3 until the rear sideofthe tray or chute arrives at the lowenextrem ity-of the curvedportion of the front of the casing. 3i 7 I .J

when the same is in afvertical'position, extends over about'one-half the surface of the ioo The letter-box is provided at its upper portion with a substantially L-shaped partition 17, having a vertical portion and a horizontal portion and dividing the letter-box into a main or lower compartment and an upper compartment. The vertical portion of the partition 17 extends downward from the curved or arched part of the'top of the box 1, and the horizontal portion of the partition 17 extends forward to the rear wall of the tray or chute when the latter is in a vertical position and is engaged by the rib or flange 16. The horizontal portion of the partition 17 is disposed at a point opposite the bottom of the opening of the front of the box, and the pivoted chute or tray is adapted to register with the opening of the box to receive mail and with the space between the front Wall and the horizontal portion of the'partition 17 to deposit the same.

The letter-box is provided at its front with a door 18, hinged at its lower edge and provided with quadrant-shaped side pieces or wings 19, and the latter have stops 20 at the rear or inner ends of their curved edges for engaging the front wall of the letter-box to limit the opening of the door and support the same. Any suitable lock may be provided, and the letter-box is provided at the upper free edge of thedoor with a flange 21, adapted to shed water and prevent moisture from percolating into the letter-box.

It will be seen that the letter-box is simple and comparatively inexpensive in construction and that it iscapable of effectually preventing mail from being abstracted from it. It will also be apparent that as the bottom part of the tray or chute is heavier than the upper portion it will close automatically and that the drop lid or cover also actuates the tray or chute to close the same. Furthermore, it will be apparent that the mail deposited in the tray or chute when the latter is in a horizontal position will be dumped through the opening or space between the partition 17 and the front wall of the letterbox and dropped into the lower or body portion thereof and that as the tray or chute is normally in a vertical position mail cannot possibly remain in it.

What I claim is- 1. In a letter-box, the combination of a box having an entrance 4 opening and, provided with slots, a tray or chute pivotally mounted in the box, open at the bottom and provided with ways, and a drop-lid provided with inwardly-extending arms passing through the slots of'the box, pivoted between their ends to the latter and engaging said ways, whereby the tray or chute will be tilted to bring its mouth or open bottom in register with the entrance-opening of the box when the lid is lifted, said arms being provided attheir inner ends with enlarged portions filling the said slots when the drop-lid is closed to exclude water from the interior of the box, substantially as described.

2. In a letter-box, the combination of a box having an entrance-opening at its front, a tray or chute pivoted within the same and provided with ways, a drop lid or cover extending across the front of the box and provided with in-' \vardly-extending arms passing through slots or'openings of the box and pivoted between their ends to the latter and engaging said ways; and a guard carried by the box or tray and arranged to cover the entrance-opening, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In a letter-box, the combination ofa box having an entrance-opening at its front and provided with a partition'extending horizon tally across the box near the top thereof and terminating short of the front wall, a pivoted chute or tray provided at its front with a curved shield and having at its back a pro jeoting rib or flange engaging the partition when the tray or chute is in a vertical position, ways mounted on the tray or chute, and a drop lid or cover extending across the front of the box and provided with inwardly-extending arms passing through slots or openings of the box and hinged between their ends to the same and engaging said ways, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. In a letter-box, the combination of a box having an entrance-opening at its front and provided with vertical slots, a tray or chute pivotally mounted in the box and open at its bottom, the straight ways arranged on the front face of the tray orchute, and a drop-lid provided with arms extending inward through the slots and pivoted between their ends to the box, said arms having their inner ends engaging the ways, whereby the tray or chute will be tilted when the drop-lid is lifted, substantially as described.

5. In a letter-box, the combination of a box having an entrance-opening at-its front, a horizontal partition extending across the top of the box and terminating short of the front wall thereof at a point opposite the bottom too of said opening, a vertical tray or chute open at its bottom, pivotally mounted in the box ata point above the partition and adapted to swing to a horizontal position to register with the opening of the box, said tray or chute being provided at its rear edge with a ,JOHN A. KLINE.

Witnesses: I

ALBERT F. HADNOT, ROBERT M. MoLEAN. 

